Francis was soaking up the sun in the backyard, taking her time nibbling on her muffin and watching Mark run around the yard. Julie sat next to her with a distant expression on her face while she poked at her omelette.

  "Mom, how did you and Dad meet?" Julie asked out of the blue.

  "Julie, why are you asking about that now?" Francis choked out, not expecting a question about Simon at the moment.

  "I am just trying to process what he did and what is going on," Julie said.

  "Yeah, I am too," Francis took a deep breath before she started to answer, "So, I met your dad when he was in pre-med and I was in nursing school. I was in the cafeteria, studying for a big exam on the bones in the human body. I had spoiled myself with a gyros sandwich, a lettuce wedge salad with thousand island dressing and a piece of cheesecake with blueberries on top because it was my birthday and I didn't have time to celebrate any other way. I had only taken one bite, because I was making a breakthrough in my studying and didn't want to lose momentum. "

  "The cafeteria was crowded that day when a blond, curly headed man asked, 'Excuse me, may I sit at your table?'"

  "I said, 'Yes,' and he set his tray down and started studying also."

  "College is so busy, Julie, that you almost have to be superhuman to get everything done before your next assignment. But, I got to a place where I could stop for a bite and to my dismay, I saw that my cheesecake was missing and half of my gyro too! I said to the young man, "What is the big idea? If you wanted this meal, you should have gotten one like it instead of spaghetti and meatballs!"

  "He looked up and realized what he had done, turned all shades of red, swallowed the food in his mouth (my food) and said, I am so sorry. I must have been distracted by my studying. I will replace your food right now,' and proceeded to go back through the food line."

  "For some reason, this tickled my funny bone and I had a difficult time trying to stop laughing, you know when something is not THAT funny, but you are tired and can't control it? When he returned, he looked at me sheepishly and then we both laughed hysterically! "

  "When we finally calmed down, he said, 'My name is Simon Russo and I am pleased to make your acquaintance.' "

  "I told him my name was Francis Long and that I had to admit that he had very good taste, eating my food, but I would appreciate it if he stuck to his plate in the future! "

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  "What had promised to be a drab, birthday meal turned out to be a lot of fun and we ended up helping each other with our studying. We got together a couple of times a week for lunch and studying after that day until the end of the semester and it turned out to be quite productive for both of us. "

  "One day, Simon stopped showing up. Considering our closeness, I was hurt when I didn't hear from him during the entire summer semester. I worked at the library on campus, which gave me time to do a lot of thinking. I wondered if I had said something wrong or if he had found someone else. I reconciled myself to the fact that our short-lived relationship was over and about that time, the telephone rang."

  "'Well hello there Francis,'" a familiar voice said. " 'How was your summer?'"

  "I was happy to hear his voice, but hurt that Simon hadn't said anything at all before he disappeared for the summer, however I realized he owed me no explanation, as we were simply study partners. "

  "I said, 'Hi Simon.'"

  "Simon said, 'I was wondering if you would like to go with me for non-cafeteria food?'"

  "Distracted by Simon's lack of eloquence and by the fact that he had called me after I gave up on him , I said,' Where were you thinking of going?'"

  "Simon said, 'I wanted to take you to a little steak restaurant. I've never been there before but I heard it is pretty nice.'"

  ' "I told him I would love to and we had a great reunion.'"

  "Oh mom, what if you had refused to see him again. Mark and I wouldn't even be here! I'm so glad you kept seeing him!" Julie said.

  "Me too, Julie! You and Mark are the greatest highlights of my life," Francis replied!

  "What happened next?" Julie asked eagerly."

  "When Simion finished pre-med he called one evening and said, 'I want to celebrate this occasion and was wondering what you thought about going back to our little steak restaurant?'"

  "I agreed and brought him a small momento. I gave it to him during appetizers of stuffed mushrooms and artichoke dip. He grinned really big and thanked me."

  "What was it mom?" Julie asked.

  "I've been trying really hard and I just can't remember." Francis said, "Possibly because of what happened next. Our server brought out a large slab of chocolate cake for us to share and when he set it down, a corner of it glittered! I looked closer and there was a simple engagement ring!"

  "As I picked it up, your dad said, 'Francis Long, will you marry me?'"

  Francis smiled, "I agreed and 2 months later we were married. We had you two children and we both finished our schooling and began our careers. And that is how we met."

  We were jolted back to reality when Mark said, "Hey mom, look at this! There is some kind of old metal thingy here in the weeds."